NHL Hockey Player News

Hagg played in five straight games but will be replaced by Philippe Myers on Saturday afternoon.

Price allowed five goals on 34 shots in the Canadiens' loss to the Devils on Thursday. Price is in the middle of a terrible stretch, losing five in a row (0-4-1) with a 5.34 GAA and .822 SV% and draws a terrible matchup in Boston on Sunday. He struggled in November last year, so maybe seeing the calendar flip to December will be enough for him to figure things out, but this matchup is for only the most desperate of owners.

Rask stopped 33 of 34 shots in the Burins win in Ottawa on Wednesday. With Jaroslav Halak facing the Rangers on Friday, Rask will take on the Canadiens for the second time this season. He has historically struggled with Montreal and allowed five goals on 31 shots in a 5-4 loss in their first meeting. This time around, the Habs come in on the tail-end of a back-to-back and are winless in their last seven.

Myers was a healthy scratch on Friday night but will replace Robert Hagg in the lineup on Saturday afternoon. Myers has three goals, three assists and a plus-9 rating in 13 games this season.

Markstrom allowed one goal on 33 shots in the Canucks win in Washington last Saturday. Markstrom was scheduled to start in Pittsburgh on Wednesday but missed the game due to an illness. He gets back in the crease on Saturday night, looking for his third straight win--he has stopped 77 of 81 shots (.951 SV%) in his previous two outings.

Kulak played on Thursday but will be a healthy scratch for the third time in four games on Saturday. With Kulak out, Cale Fleury will draw back into the lineup.

Fleury was a healthy scratch on Thursday but will replace Mike Reilly in the lineup on Saturday. Fleury has had a slow start offensively, posting just one goal and no assists in 19 games.

Reilly played in three straight games, picking up two assists, but will be replaced by Gustav Olofsson on the blueline on Saturday.

Olofsson was recently called up from Laval (AHL) after collecting seven assists in 20 games. Olofsson has appeared in 56 career NHL games (all with Minnesota) since being drafted in the second-round in 2013. Olofsson will replace Brett Kulak on the Canadiens' third-pair.

Kinkaid gave up three goals on 13 shots after replacing Carey Price in Montreal's blowout loss to the Bruins on Tuesday. Kinkaid has had a really difficult time this season, allowing at least three goals in all five of his outings, going 1-1-2 with a 4.29 GAA and .877 SV%. Until he can get back on-track, he shouldn't be considered as a spot-start option.

Smith allowed two goals on 27 shots in the Oilers win in Vegas last Saturday. The Oilers have been consistent with their goalie rotation this season, so Smith will start after watching Mikko Koskinen for the last two games. Smith has gone 4-3-0 with a 2.84 GAA and .908 SV% in his last seven starts. In his first game vs. the Canucks, Smith stopped 31 of 33 shots in a 3-2 win.

Saarijarvi was a third-round pick (No.73 overall) in 2015 and never really got things going in the AHL. After posting 31 points (11G / 20A) in 34 games in his final OHL season, Saarijarvi posted just 28 points (2G / 26A) in 125 AHL games. He will report to Tucson (AHL).

Comrie was originally a second-round pick of the Jets but was claimed off of waivers by the Coyotes during the preseason. Comrie has not appeared in an NHL game this season but has gone 4-0-0 with a 2.75 GAA and .900 SV% in four AHL starts. With Jimmy Howard hurt, Comrie could join the Red Wings immediately and serve as Jonathan Bernier's backup.

Rittich stopped 34 of 36 shots in the Flames win in Buffalo on Wednesday. Rittich has been superb in his last three outings, going 2-0-1 while stopping 105 of the 112 shots (.938 SV%) that he faced. Now he gets the Senators at home with their third-string goalie in net, so don't hesitate to start him tonight. He is 6-1-2 with a 2.40 GAA, .916 SV% and one shutout at the Scotiabank Saddledome.

Nieves played in three straight games but will be a healthy scratch in New Jersey on Saturday afternoon. Michael Haley will replace Nieves on the Rangers fourth line.

Hutton surrendered five goals on 29 shots in the Sabres loss in Tampa Bay on Monday. Hutton is on a seven-game personal losing streak, going 0-5-2 with a hideous 4.02 GAA and .869 SV%. He will look to record a win for the first time since October 22nd when he faces the Maple Leafs on Saturday, but the matchup is far from ideal.

Rooney has missed the last seven games with an upper-body injury but will replace Jack Hughes (lower-body) in the lineup on Saturday. Rooney has just one assist in 13 games this season.

Hughes missed Friday's practice with a lower-body injury that he suffered while blocking a shot in Montreal. Luckily for the Devils, Kevin Rooney is ready to return from injury, replacing Hughes up-front. Hughes should be considered questionable heading into their Monday/Tuesday back-to-back.

Blackwood allowed four goals on 48 shots in the Devils' win in Montreal on Thursday. Blackwood has allowed three-plus goals in four straight starts and is now 6-4-1 with a 3.04 GAA and .911 SV% in November. In his first start against the Rangers, Blackwood stopped 29 of 31 shots in a 5-2 win (Oct.17).

McElhinney stopped 32 of 34 shots in the Lightning's win in Chicago on November 21st. Andrei Vasilevskiy started the last four games, including last night, so McElhinney will face his former team on Saturday. He has won three in a row but lost in his only other start vs. Carolina, allowing four goals on 44 shots in a 4-3 OT defeat.